Sunday, February 28, 2016

Executive Chef Julia Belton brings serious street creds to FLAVOR: A
graduate of the Culinary Institute of America, Cornell’s Business
Hospitality School and working at the 3 starred Michelin rated Eleven
Madison Park under Chef Daniel Humm.

I had met Vanna and Julia Belton, FLAVOR owners, about six weeks ago
to talk about the Women Chefs and Restaurateurs organization and it was
at that time they invited me back as their guest. Brunch it was going to be.

The new FLAVOR Restaurant, Bar and Lounge, formerly located in the spot
known as the Midtown Yacht Club and Midtown BBQ , has cleaned up the
former’s act --- no more peanut shells on the floor. A total remodel on
the Mt. Vernon space on Centre Street, FLAVOR is fresh, clean and
bright. The muted pale grey washed brick façade with a large picture
window, lets plenty of light in the main dining
room and bar. Wood floors, well placed mirrors, off white wainscoting
and light grey walls open up the small space to feel very spacious and
airy.

Friday, February 26, 2016

Frederick
Restaurant Week is a 7-day promotion that features unique and fine
dining options available in Downtown Frederick and the surrounding
area. Participating restaurants will offer diners multi-course meals
at mouth-watering prices the week of March 6-12, 2016.

Featuring 20 restaurants, Frederick Restaurant Week is the perfect ti
me to visit a favorite restaurant or try something new. Chefs will
prepare delicious multi-course menus. During Frederick Restaurant
Week, lunches and dinners are offered at various special prices. All
costs are exclusive of tax, beverages and gratuity.

During Frederick Restaurant Week, no tickets or special passes are needed. However, reservations are strongly recommended. Contact the individual restaurants to make your reservations. Restaurant menus and contact information can be found on the website.

Is it
fair, I ask you that Leap Year babies get free food because they were born
February 29th, a birthday that comes once every four years? Heck, we age every year and they age every
four years, is that fair?. Then again, they will have problems with Social Security
and Medicare – I wonder how that works? Just having some fun.

If you
are a leap year baby here in Baltimore, you can eat for free for breakfast,
brunch and dinner. These following restaurants have you covered. On February 29th,
all you have to do is present a photo ID upon being seated and then order their
special delectable leap year promotion meal.

Breakfast – start early, as early as 6:30
a.m. at GEB’s BBQ in Woodlawn to receive a free breakfast sandwich. Don’t let the industrial park surroundings
throw you; the interior is quite nice as is the food.

Lunch/Brunch
– Leaplings eat Free “Cakes”
– that is, anyone born on February 29th and one guest, will share a
free crab CAKE Po’ Boy and a tall stack of specialty panCAKES when visiting one
of the Miss Shirley’s Cafes. The offer is only good for 1 visit total (one
location for the whole day-February 29th)

Dinner
– Show the folks at Langermann your photo ID that you are a leap year baby
and enjoy a free entrée up to $25 value. One visit only on February 29th.
The promotion is not applicable with other promotions or discounts.

Monday, February 22, 2016

Chefs’ tables are dining tables set up in restaurant
kitchens so guests can be immersed in the mystique and the intensity of the kitchen’s inner workings
during service. Chefs’ tables are not
new but what is new and open to the public is the “Private Kitchen” at The Food
Market in Hampden. The Private Kitchen
is not exactly in the restaurant kitchen, it is located in the basement where
one walks past storage, the walk-in and around the corner to a private dining
room and fully equipped kitchen.

Having recently sampled the Monthly Open Chef’s 5 Course Dinner
that The Food Market is offering on March 26th, one would be lucky
to grab one of the twelve tickets for sale at $80 each. Tickets are sold on a first come, first
served basis.

Friday, February 19, 2016

Loupe, formerly City Dining Cards, is evolving with their
new app for both I-Phones and Droids. The app lists a large selection of
restaurants in the city and surrounding areas.
A good number of those restaurants offer a $10 discount on $40/ $5 off $20
purchases of food and reusable after 90 days from the previous dining. Baltimore, Buffalo, New Orleans, Pittsburgh,
Rochester and Syracuse are enjoying the discounts now with Chicago,
Philadelphia and Toronto to soon come aboard.

The application is free, so you have nothing to lose and
everything to gain. New restaurants are being added every day.

For Baltimore readers here are just a handful of the
numerous restaurants on Loupe offering the discount:

Thursday, February 18, 2016

Chef
Dave Sherman, owner of Hampden’s Café Cito is the first confirmed concept for
R. House and it’s called Ground & Griddled.
“Ground & Griddled will be a destination where both the food novice
and super foodie can come and enjoy unpretentious breakfast and brunch cuisine
with ridiculously warm hospitality,” Sherman said. “My mission is to make people
feel completely comfortable asking questions about different coffees,
techniques, and menu ingredients so that they can really enjoy their
experience. I just want to share my love for coffee and eggs with everyone in
Charm City.”

Wednesday, February 17, 2016

Yes, there are meatballs and I’ll get to that in a minute.
There are starters like charcuterie, fried pickles, bruschetta of the day and
rotating specials. Salads, yes – house
salad, seasonal salad and roasted veggies.
Starches, check – mashed potatoes, creamy, cheesy polenta, a daily
risotto, white beans and kale and spaghetti or rigatoni. Put an egg on it, available for a small
surcharge. Your sweet tooth isn’t ignored – churros with dipping sauce and ice
cream by the scoop.

Burger King was on to something a long time ago with the
concept of “having it your way.” As fast food chains like McDonalds and others
like them are scrambling to get their customers back, fast casual concept
restaurants that let you choose your ingredients, creating a meal to your
personal preferences are the rage. Enter Baltimore’s latest fast casual concept,
8 Ball Meatball that is opening this Sunday, February 21st in Fells Point at the old Tapas Adela
location, 814 South Broadway.

Owner, local Paul Weitz, “There are a ton of great
restaurant options in Fells Point, but we hope to bring something unique to the
table (pun intended). This is a town that appreciates solid, high-quality food
and we are very optimistic our customizable meatball selections will hit the
spot.”

Open for lunch daily at 11 a.m. and until midnight from
Sunday, through Wednesday and 2 a.m. Thursday through Saturday – perfect for
the bar patrons in the waterfront neighborhood.

As the 8 Ball Meatball website says, anything can be
made into a meatball. The restaurant will offer four types of meatballs daily —
classic, gluten-free herb chicken, spicy pork and vegetarian — and five sauces,
classic tomato, Parmesan cream, spicy pork, pesto and mushroom gravy. A fifth
rotating "special ball" and sauce will also be available each
night. Customers can order their meatball selection to be served in a
bowl, as a sub or sliders with their choice of side dishes.

Oh, don’t let me forget that guests can imbibe with a beer,
wine or a craft cocktail.

Thursday, February 11, 2016

The restaurant is named after the bright orange-red berry
from a shrub in China that has a sweet tart taste. Not only is the goji berry
the namesake of this restaurant you will find the slightly sweet tart berry in
one of the house specialties, Red Goji chicken --- stir fried chicken with goji
berries, mushrooms and scallions in a sweet oyster sauce. The menu boasts a whole Peking duck, dinner
for two with the appropriate scallions, hoisin sauce and pancakes.

If I hadn’t been going to Goldberg’s Bagels in Club Center I
wouldn’t have even known there was a new Asian restaurant. The shopping center
sits recessed off Reisterstown Road in the heart of Pikesville’s commercial
district. A number of you might remember
it as Olive & Sesame. Open now for a
couple months, Red Goji is Asian – offering a selection of Japanese, Chinese
and Thai dishes.

For those who love sushi, nigiri and/or sashimi, Red Goji
can accommodate you ala carte or choose the lunch or dinner choices.

Pad Thai, lettuce wraps and Tom Yum soup give a nod to the
Thai influences that are served up at Red Goji.

Red Goji Restaurant – Club Center – 1500 Reisterstown Road,
Pikesville, MD 21208 443 450-5993 Closed
on Mondays. Eat in or carry out. There
is no website and no social media. There is plenty of free parking available.

Charm City Chocolate candy shop offers up an assortment of handcrafted chocolates by local owners Todd and Michelle Zimmerman, along with a variety of gummy candies, jelly beans and old-time sweet treats.

With Valentine’s Day, just a couple days away, seems the perfect
timing to taste test the new Charm City Chocolates located at 809 W. 36th
Street (the Avenue) in Hampden Village.
Nothing could be better for your loving partner than a heart shaped box
of the rich, decadent chocolate covered, gooey cherries! Well, that and the
chocolate covered strawberries would rank high on my list. (hint, hint!)

Chocolate bonbons, truffles, creams, fondants, fudge and
more are handmade on-site at Charm City Chocolate using the finest ingredients
and family recipes. Specialties include the above mentioned cordial cherries
and their Chesapeake Crunch, a savory chocolate confection that blends old
Maryland flavor favorites.

Maybe you want to give more than a box of chocolates; the
Zimmerman’s have themed gift baskets.

Current store hours are 12 p.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday,
Thursday and Sunday; and 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

Tuesday, February 02, 2016

The emcee, a James Beard nominee, celebrity chef and
restaurateur Bryan Voltaggio,
announced today the competing, award-winning Baltimore chefs for the Saturday, April
23rd St. Agnes Hospital
Foundation “The Supper” fundraiser to be held at the Marriott
Waterfront.

Similar to Chef José Andrés long-running Washington, DC ”
Capital Food Fight” in its format, “The Supper” has four of Baltimore’s top
chefs cook, Iron Chef style, in a
kitchen arena, for guests to cheer on.
The emcees will dish out play-by- play commentary for guests as the 3
course culinary duels commence. Like March Madness’s tiered competition, the
winning chefs from the first two courses will go sauté pan, chef knife and
Microplanes against each other to receive the top toque bragging rights.

Baltimore’s own Atlas Restaurant Group, owners of Ouzo Bay,
Azumi, Harbor East Deli and soon to open Loch Bar are expanding with a second
rendition of their Ouzo Bay Greek Kouzina to open in Boca Raton, Florida late
summer 2016.

When contacted, spokesperson Joe Sweeney advised, “We have an
operating partner in Boca Raton and this is the first part of their planned
expansion and goal of opening multiple units for the Ouzo Bay concept over the
next 10 year.”

Located in the upscale Mizner Park in Boca Raton, the new
Ouzo Bay will seat 325 comfortably and continue to promote their Mediterranean
cuisine with a strong salute to its Greek influence – OPA! Menu items will highlight whole, fresh fish
flown in from around the world, grass-fed lamb, and prime beef. The “posh”
full-service bar and lounge will feature handcrafted cocktails, small batch
whiskeys and a strong Greek selection of wines.

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Dining Dish (a.k.a, Dara Bunjon) is founder of Dara Does It, which caters to the food industry everything from PR to food styling to cooking instructions, and more. Enjoy her rants, raves, recipes and food adventures, and let her know yours!

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